March 2010
In this issue:

	Lunch Seminar: Building an Enterprise-Class SAN
	Is VoIP Right for You?
	Microsoft OneNote
	Beyond Antivirus
	Leasing Offers
	Unified Communications
	Setting Goals for Your Web Site
	Cartoon & Quote

While most of us welcome the opportunity to stay in touch virtually anytime from anywhere, keeping up with phone calls, voicemail, e-mail and instant messaging can distract even the most disciplined person from more important concerns.

Enter the white knight of "unified communications," technology that integrates phone calls, voice mail and video conferencing - all your telephone communications - with your e-mail, documents and other applications on a personal computer. Unified communications becomes even more valuable when extended to fax and especially useful when linked with information in customer or sales-prospect databases, according to Dave Casey, president of Westron Communications, a network technology integration company in Carrolton, Texas.

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Today, it seems like everybody has a Web site, whether it’s a small or a large business, an individual or an organization. Without a Web site, your business is missing out on a relatively inexpensive, yet very effective way to reach out to a widespread audience beyond your local customer base. However, having a Web presence is only valuable if the site serves a purpose and fulfills a certain set of goals that you designate from the beginning.

Begin by Being Consistent
So what should these goals be? First and foremost, before you tackle your Web site, you need to really get to know your business.

How familiar are you with your business’ vision or mission statement? Does your business have a vision or mission statement?
 

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Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) services enable businesses to conduct calls across the same network to access the Internet and get email – and at a fraction of the cost of traditional voice networks. However, VoIP developers have been focused on quality and reliability versus security. Therefore, if you choose to adopt VoIP, it is up to you to take the proper steps to secure it.

Background and benefits
The technology behind VoIP has been around for a few years; early incarnations of VoIP were plagued by spotty service, muddled and dropped calls. Only in the last few years has VoIP service improved enough to make it sufficiently reliable and stable for business use. In fact, businesses are finding that a well-planned and implemented VoIP system can provide call quality and reliability that rivals mobile phone or landline calls.

The number one benefit of VoIP is its low cost. In the conventional telephony world, multiple phone lines, conference calling features, and long distance charges create many extra charges.

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Many of us carry a notebook or notepad around to take notes for business, school, or personal projects. But can you easily find — and decipher — the info you need? Is it convenient to share your notes with others? Take control with Microsoft Office OneNote 2007, the easy-to-use note-taking and information-management program where you can capture ideas and information in electronic form. Insert files or Web content in full-color, searchable format or as icons that you can click to access. Watch this demo to see how simple it is to gather, format, organize, and share information. And then say goodbye to your notepad!

How to do it (text version):

Get started with OneNote
Take and format notes
Organize your notes
Distribute notes to other people

Play Demo

Taking advantage of the Internet to make your small business' information more accessible to employees and outsiders can offer business benefits. If the Internet is a part of your business then you should be equipped to deal with the security issues that have been introduced. If your business is connected to the Internet, then all of the information you keep on your computers and servers is potentially at risk. The more complex the computing environment gets, the greater (and diverse) the risk. At the same time your reliance on the Internet is growing, the Internet threat landscape is continuously evolving and becoming more severe.

In today's small business computing environment, antivirus alone does not provide adequate security. However, with the right combination of security measures, you can keep your valuable business data and information safe and sound and where it belongs – inside your network – and away from malicious code or intruders.

Identify your assets
The first step to a comprehensive security program to identify the electronic information you keep that is of the most value to your business, also taking into consideration where that information resides. Generally, small businesses will find their most sensitive information relates to private customer information, strategic plans, financial data, and business operations. Imagine what would happen if this information was damaged or lost.

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Today's economic climate of rising energy costs, uncertainty in global financial markets and relentless pressure to drive down business costs poses multiple challenges for most companies. With the economy sluggish and financial "fuel" scarce, making the financial commitments needed to enhance or even maintain an IT infrastructure can be difficult. Yet those firms that make sound decisions in tough times by strengthening their infrastructure will be best positioned when the economy recovers and demand picks up.

Spending slows but still grows
According to IDC, a leading provider of global IT research and advice, IT spending is slowing—but still growing. Year-over-year spending growth for total IT is expected to slow in 2008 and 2009 before picking up in 2010.[1] In a June 2008 customer survey by HP Financial Services, some 75 percent of respondents said that current economic conditions have detrimentally affected their budgets. Nearly three in four said their companies have delayed or canceled new projects, 59 percent said they have scaled back or delayed new hardware deployments, and 52 percent said their companies have reduced head count.

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